“What exactly are you supposed to do when playing in a river?” You might be wondering that yourself.
Simply wading in the shallows or swimming a little can make for a fun day by the river, but for those who want to know a bit more about children’s summer outdoor activities, here are some recommended games and recreational ideas you can enjoy at the river.
We’ve got everything from activities that require no equipment to fairly serious adventures!
Get out into nature, dive in wholeheartedly, and we hope you make all kinds of new discoveries!
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Fun river activities. Recreational games (1–10)
rustling; rough and dry (sound/feel)
Even if you don’t have any fishing gear, you can easily try a river activity called “gasagasa.” It’s a game where you catch fish and aquatic insects that live around aquatic plants and along the riverbank using a net.
Since you often step into the river to catch them, it’s best to do this in a gently flowing stream.
Try different techniques like turning over stones or scooping up sand.
Another method is to quietly slide your net near aquatic plants or seaweed and then lift it up toward the surface.
Anyone with a net can enjoy this, so give it a try when you have a chance to connect with nature.
Sasabune Showdown
Old-fashioned games are simple yet surprisingly profound, aren’t they? This bamboo-leaf boat is a traditional pastime I’d love to pass on to the next generation.
It’s easy to make: pick a bamboo leaf and fold the tip.
On the flattened tip, make two cuts by hand, then cross the right and left flaps.
Do the same on both sides and you’re done.
Make a bunch and race them with your friends in a stream or irrigation channel.
A boat going up the river
This is an experiment where a boat, which would normally drift downstream, climbs upstream by winding a string using the river’s current.
You can make it with everyday materials like Styrofoam, so give it a try!
water gun
The traditional Japanese water gun was a piece of bamboo with a small hole at the tip to squirt water.
Nowadays, you can buy larger models with big reservoirs that let you spray continuously, and those have actually become the mainstream.
Splashing each other with water in the hot summer isn’t just a fun game—it’s also a great way to cool down, so I highly recommend it.
On the TV show “Takeshi’s Castle,” which used to air, battles with large water guns were a famous feature.
It’s an item that tickles the childlike heart even when you’re an adult.
flowing somen (nagashi-somen)
When it comes to nagashi-somen, it’s a quintessential symbol of summer, isn’t it? It’s funny how just sending somen noodles flowing along can get everyone so excited.
Both adults and children love it.
In Japan, bamboo with a hollow interior—perfect for nagashi-somen—is relatively easy to obtain, so it’s a fairly accessible activity to try.
Green bamboo, running water, and somen noodles—it’s a parade of things that make you feel cool and refreshed.
In the video, after the nagashi-somen, there’s even a lively event where they send slippery black soybeans down the chute, and if you can catch them with chopsticks, you win a cash prize.
gold panning
You might not be very familiar with this, but sometimes you can find gold dust in rivers.
It doesn’t happen often, and that rarity is exactly what makes it feel exciting—like a treasure hunt.
As long as you have a tool called a panning pan, anyone can try collecting gold dust.
foil surfing
Have you heard of foil surfing, which has been slowly gaining popularity here in Japan? It’s a type of surfing where you attach a hydrofoil—shaped like a small airplane—under the surfboard.
While regular surfing is all about riding waves, the best thing about foil surfing is that you can enjoy it even without waves.
If you try it on a river as-is, you’ll get carried away by the current, so secure a handled rope to something immovable, like a tree, and give it a go.
You’ll get hooked on the strange sensation—it feels like you’re floating.